President Donald Trump made an odd facial expression during a military flyover that took place while he welcomed Chinese leader Xi Jinping.
On Wednesday, Trump met Xi at Joint Base Andrews, where members of the U.S. military cleaned a red carpet that had been laid out for Xi. The White House had announced in the days leading up to the visit that Trump would greet Xi with pageantry. The ceremony included two B-1 bombers soaring overhead.
However, online commentators noticed videos and photos that showed Trump clenching his teeth and scrunching his face during the military flyover, as though the sound seemed to hurt him. His expression stood in stark contrast to Xi's composure.
The political news network MeidasTouch posted a video of the moment and described it as, "Trump winces in pain during the loud military flyover as Xi shows no reaction."
The response to the video mostly expressed mockery and embarrassment, but others analyzed what it meant about Trump's health. Journalist and political commentator Barry Malone reacted by writing in a post on X, "Wow. A truly god-tier meme has just dropped."
"Watch Xi in comparison," pointed out disinformation expert and Kash Patel foe Jim Stewartson. "It's not that loud, but Trump's brain does not filter input correctly anymore due to his worsening frontotemporal dementia. The sound made his nervous system go into full overload—which registers as pain."
Trump has no publicly disclosed dementia diagnosis. Stewartson added, "Note the glove," referring to the black glove that Trump wore and was holding to his forehead at the moment. "It is not cold. Sad."
"Now you see why Trump got 5 deferments from Vietnam," joked author Don Winslow. "Even just the SOUND of a plane flyover is too much for the fat baby in makeup and a diaper. Look at the President of China. No reaction."
"0 Days Since Being a Global Embarrassment," lamented Democratic political strategist and healthcare advocate Melanie D'Arrigo, reacting to a picture of the moment.